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The Slavic Heritage Band is a Houston group of seven to nine musicians who love performing Czech and Polish polkas and waltzes. They were formerly known as The Jim Rohde Brass Band, which was temporarily disbanded when Jim and his wife Rose Marie Baca moved from Houston back to their roots in Fayette County. Most of the members are also associated with the Lodge 88 Orchestra. The Slavic Heritage Band have performed at the Houston Polish Festival and numerous Catholic Church and SPJST events around Houston such as the Houston Czech Center Museum and several Hermann Sons events. They are slowly rebuilding their bookings as Covid levels permit. The Slavic Heritage Band also branches out into Big Band music when requested such as performances at The Village of Tanglewood.

As the saying goes, “Every Czech can play an instrument, but some shouldn’t”. Well, the percentage of Czech musicians who should play seems to be fairly large, particularly in Harris County, where the congregation of Czech’s that emigrated from the music rich blackland farms of Central Texas after World War II have called home.

Orchestras. In 1964, a seed was planted for the idea of a Lodge orchestra when Rudy Zatopek organized a group of lodge musicians: Bob Sustala, Stanley Sebesta, Dennis Mlcak, Johnny Mlcak, Norman Barnes, J. Pokorney, and Jeff Koudelka who performed after the ground-breaking ceremony for the new hall. This idea led to the desire in the 1970s to form their own orchestra from members, as other lodges around the state have done. The Orchestra was intended to play only at Lodge 88 functions several times a year and possibly other events around the area, not as a weekly performing dance band, and it was to be an all-volunteer group.